#but i think it would be nice for ryuki to have someone who could understand even a little

[scientist-of-love]

The things we do for love -

Something that isn't really gone into in depth in the series, especially Nirvana Initiative, is Pewter's connection with the psyncers. He and Ryuki do have similarities. (More thoughts in tags)

[pkmnomegaverse]

Alola Fams Part 2

From this doc.  The Zossie/Mallow and Ryuki/Sophocles sections are almost word-for-word what I wrote in a different post, since this is what I pulled the info from.  I also have cut the Hapu/Acerola and Kukui/Burnet fams and will not add them back, but kept them here for completeness sake.  Plus they’re in the original doc.

- Zossie (Alpha) & Mallow Lahela (Beta) (EelGrassShipping) Tilia Lahela - Omega!Girl 

Tilia is Starlord. Minus the dead mom bit (unless I go hard and Ulu raises her). Disappeared dad because Zossie didn't know Mallow was pregnant.  Plus drama for Mallow with the difficulty of raising a child with unique needs without a parent who would easily understand and have solutions. 

Because the pairing itself has potential though, I do like the idea of either Tilia trying to find a way to meet Zossie, or Zossie coming back years later and rekindling her relationship with Mallow (plus actually being a parent to Tilia).  Perhaps Dulse is very firm on them leaving, which is why Zossie leaves in the first place despite liking Alola.  Gotta live their own lives in their own world or something.  To stay attracts Ultra Beasts.  Constantly opening up wormholes to go back and forth is bad cause it destabilizes things.  Makes the area a hotspot for weirdness.

Maybe once Zossie comes back, she makes the decision to forsake her world and live with her new family.  That’s the happy end.  Other end is she already has a family now in her other world so her and Mallow are doomed, but that defeats the purpose of exploring this couple.  

I do think a lil sibling for Tilia would be interesting.  Either half-sibling (cause doesn’t struggle with being half-alien) or a second baby for when Zossie is back.  If non-half alien route, the father is someone who is unimportant.  Mallow is still single momming it.  Or she breaks up with the guy/lady by the time Zossie is back.

- Kiawe Kamaka (Alpha) & Ilima [Paoa] Kamaka (Omega) (YellowFlowerShipping) Maku Kamaka - Alpha!Boy Kokio “Koki” Kamaka - Omega!Boy 

Ilima is a thot. But that might not affect stuff with Kiawe too much. Regardless, he's the type to let men raw him.  Per-Kiawe for sure (so even when you see him in game, it's happening on the side). 

I don't think he cheats on Kiawe? I actually like the thot/simple hard working man ships enough to go easy on them.  But it's an option. 

Really the only drama here would be Maku not being Kiawe’s son.  But neither Kiawe or Maku know this.  Just because Maku looks up to Kiawe so much and is very proud to be his son.  To find out some random guy was his bio dad would really hurt him.  Plus the betrayal Kiawe would feel towards Illima for lying. I guess Ilima chose the best guy to be the “father” and just said he was the dad even though he himself wasn't entirely sure.  

- Ryuki Solanum (Alpha) & Sophocles Barlow (Omega) (PalilaShipping) Mucuna Solanum - Omega!Boy

100% a hook up leads to baby situation. They are working together and Sophocles is crushing on this cool punk guy.  Ryuki maybe teasingly flirts back a bit, fueling things.  Sophocles heat hits and one thing leads to another and bam, baby.  Bonus points for being somewhere more isolated together when they have to deal with it.  Setting up a concert along a route?  Forest sex. 

They do try to make things work cause Ryuki does want to be there for baby Mucuna.  It's not discussed between them, but Ryuki is likely the type to hook up with groupies and such and just not say anything.  Unspoken he's cheating on Soffy. There are multiple drama routes here. 

(1) Ryuki (or really Sophocles) gets baby dropped on him from one of the hookups.  Thus Soffy raising Mucuna’s half-siblings. 

(2) Sophocles cheats on Ryuki cause if his sort of mate is doing it, he can too.  But then baby #2 cause drama. Anyone is fine, but I want a hot dude for him.  Cross is an option if jerk option is preferred.  So now he’s the one at fault for the Mucuna’s half-sibling to raise.  Ryuki might not care too much but isn’t happy about it.

(3) Leaves his cheating man and settles down in a new region with someone else.  He 100% cannot stay in Alola for this route.  So I’m at the impass again of needing a ship for him.  I can see a nice science man being an option.  But the who is the question.  Conway?  Watch more movies for ideas???

- Hapu Makua (Alpha) & Acerola [Kealoha] Makua (Omega) (SilkStoneShipping) Akoko Makua - Omega!Girl (Twin) Akia Makua - Alpha!Girl (twin)

The fam I considering cutting at times.  As I don't feel anything for the ship.  Mainly because I actually don't like either character that much.

 I actually can’t come up with any good drama for them, because I don’t care.

I already have Valen and Lonan for this so perhaps best not to do it again, but a route to just run the Alyssa/Bates parallel hard would be Akia dying young but possessing her sister.  Two souls, one body.  But there’s still no substance here so???  

- Molayne Barlow (Beta) & Kahili Palakiko (Omega) (SteelWedgeShipping) Calix Palakiko - Beta!Boy  

I actually like this family and don't want to see them suffer.  Can suffer through Sophocles. 

Calix is maybe the oldest kid if I dont cut Kalei. 

  - Kukui (Alpha) & Burnet (Beta) (EternalHoneyMoonShipping) Kalei Burnet-Kukui - Beta!Girl

I just...don't care about this family.   It's cute….but I don't care. So the other fam I consider cutting.  They could just remain childless even though they seem like a couple who would like children.  Thus the struggle. 

Possible Fankid Groups Based on age and year born (SuMo ends January 2017)

Older

Calix (2018-2020)

Kalei (late 2017-2019)

Mid Old

Maku (July 2020-Dec 2020)

Camillus (2020-2021)

Leila (2021-2023)

Mucuna (2020-2021)

Mid Young

Tilia (late 2022-2025)

Kai (2023-2025)

Luna (2022-2025)

Koa (2023-2025)

Koki (2025)

[sailor-cresselia]

Zi-O 35: *chuckles* I’m in danger

(Using the RiderTimeFansubs version today) 

Now... it’s show Rider Zi-O Inoue time. 

(I’m out of opening jokes guys.)

-

Now that is a Black Widow if I ever saw one. Seriously, lady, you’re creeping me out. I am literally 33 seconds in.

Lady, er, sorry, Yuko, I don’t know what you were convicted of, but. Um. You’re not really giving off the impression of someone who is exactly going to be… okay if you go outside.

I will give Hora kudos for not shoving the watch into her chest, though. Good call. And apparently Another Kiva gets to summon the Real Kiva’s… support? I don’t actually know what those three Fangire are to Kiva, but. Yeah. I’mma go with either ‘support’ or ‘retainers’ for now.

Flip-cut to 2008, with… Woz… creeping on 2008 Yuko. This Is Fine.

Woz. I know you somehow make it into the Gaia Library in FOREVER. I know you don’t get much to do in FOREVER. I have not seen FOREVER yet, that’s next on the agenda.

BUT YOU DON’T GET TO SAY KEYWORD. YOU JUST DON’T.

(But still, kudos for the possible nod to the film having just gotten it’s home release, that’s clever.)

A quick note on the opening. Nothings changed in a few episodes, not since we got Trinity. But I can’t help but be uncomfortable with the fact that they still have the last scene with characters be the section with Zi-O and Geiz back to back, and then turning around and clashing.

It’s right up there with Cross-Z Charge staying in the OP for Build through the entire season, but Cross-Z Magma never making it in.

Keeping something that was relevant, but became quickly outdated. I’d say they should have swapped this segment somehow by at least the end of the Another Zi-O Arc, if not before. … Nah, end of Another Zi-O would be the best place. I was thinking that after Geiz gave Sougo his belt, and that whole shindig, but there was still an amount of animosity after that for a while.

OH NOOO MY HEART! THEY’RE ALL GETTING ALONG AND FAWNING OVER JUNICHIRO’S APPLE PIE! It’s too cute, help!

But really, all four are immediately smiling, and it’s adorable. Woz kind of seems like he’s lost all of his stoic traits from even two arcs ago, though.

…oh no, Sougo’s Space Case tendencies transferred to Woz when they started using Trinity.

That’s the only answer. Sougo’s been increasingly competent, and both him and Geiz are getting better at talking to people… and Woz has become comic relief. Oh no personality blending nooooo…

But that is exactly the right set of reactions to Sougo saying he’s been in love. A+ to Tsukuyomi pointing out that he’s ‘like a kid.’

Sougo: Of course I’ve been in love! :)

Geiz: Oh god you’re telling us about it. End me now…

...HUH. Just realized. Junichiro wouldn’t know about this, would he? Kiva – and thus our past segments – were in 2008, but Sougo came to live with his uncle in 2009. So Sougo’s parents were still alive at this point.

2008 Sougo didn’t have friends, either.

Tsukuyomi and Geiz looking on in confusion, Junichiro messing with his nephew (while also confused) and Woz… continues eating pie. I’m worried about you, dude. Character Decay’s not a good thing.

And we have a customer, interrupting story time!

OH WOW! He’s here to get a watch fixed! That’s a first from a non-Time Traveler! The only people bringing in actual time pieces have been Woz and Mondo – you know, Quiz, remember him?

(Customer thinks the shop may have become a cafe – fair, given the scene he’s just walked in on – and Uncle’s stuck in cat-pun mode. Whoops.)

(I’ve started Decade, and the apparently recurring ‘I thought this was a cafe’ joke from there with regards to the Photo Studio just popped into my head. Nice.)

Yuko is. Scary. She wants to take over the world to change the laws.

:casts a nervous glance over at the Kiva and Ryuki arcs of Decade:

Hora’s got a point – the only female Another Rider was Amane, as Another Blade, and she was selected by Hat!Woz. But… looks like Hora’s still in the ‘looking for a new King’ state. Even Heure seems to have moved past that. Last arc, he was trying to find Hibiki, not a candidate. Interesting.

Customer is a lawyer, and knows that he can’t always be the ‘gallant hero’ that Sougo seems to think lawyers are. After all, he couldn’t help ‘that pretty lady.’ But he’s forgotten something at the counter, and Sougo – good boy that he is – rushes off to follow and return it.

YUKO. STOPPED A CAR. WITH HER FOOT. IN HEELS. AND A TINY SKIRT.

:siiiiiigh: Did we really need that pan shot along her leg? Did we?

No. No we didn’t.

And we didn’t need Yuko being a CREEPER to her former lawyer – aka Customer. She’s got a… really sensitive nose. That’s really creepy, especially since she’s using it to unnerve literally everyone around her. It’s not even an Another Kiva thing – she was doing this to identify the exact wine her former boyfriend had in the cold open.

Yuko Kitajima, okay, so that’s her last name. And her doing this ‘ah, yes, it’s that aroma’ trick is what lets her lawyer know it’s her. So she’s done this for a long time.

Another Kiva has some nice touches – roses at the lapels of her cape, where the chain attaches, the stained glass aesthetic.

HOWEVER. I’m NOT here for the eyes. That bright piercing blue is both unnerving AND doesn’t go with the rest of the look! Not to mention the eyes on her shoulders! NO NO NOPE NOT HERE FOR THAT.

...When did Zi-O drop the ‘dial’ eyes, anyway? Definitely by Another Zi-O, I know that… but the Future Another Riders had them, too. Then again, the years have all been ‘2019’ for the last few arcs. Blade, Hibiki, and now Kiva definitely have said 2019. Huh. Wonder if it’s something to do with that.

Another Kiva: I’m going to be queen, and this world will be ~mine~.

Sougo: Queen? :o

SOUGO! THIS IS NOT THE TIME! DO NOT APPRECIATE THE COLORS! YOU ARE UNDER ATTACK!

Ooh, hey, she’s even got a version of Kivat-Bat on there! Nice!

Sougo, please at least put on one of your armors. Like. Any of them would do, right now. Build would be good! You can tank hits really well in that one! Decade’d be better! But just something to give you defense! This is four on one you fool you are outnumbered

AND NOW you are also outgunned, because she can turn her Summoned Fangire Replicas into their weapon forms. Delightful.

And after getting hit by the hammer, sword, and gun, Sougo’s knocked right the hell out of his transformation. Whoops.

Yuko. Yuko don’t – don’t stand over him like that, what are you doing? No, no, don’t do the chin thing, Sougo’s already a wreck, we don’t need him losing sensibility already! Don’t leave the braincell to Geiz! Nooooo-

Hora: So, a queen, huh?

Yuko: How dare a servant talk to me.

OH MY GOODNESS WOW

Hora’s not having this. Just. Teleports out of the way of Yuko trying to slap her. Good call.

YUKO. FRICKING. Kicks up a manhole cover. THROWS IT LIKE A FRISBEE at Hora.

Hora just TURNS HER HEAD to dodge. All she gets is a cut on the cheek – HORA YOU’RE LUCKY TO BE ALIVE OH MY GOD.

Hora’s gonna do a violence.

(Hey, Heure, back when we met Swartz, you told him not to treat you like a child. So… what’s with you two getting ice cream? That’s. Weird. And creepy.)

HEURE. HORA.  GET OUT OF THERE. BOTH OF YOU. YOU CAN DO SO MUCH BETTER THAN THIS.

Cut to evening in the shop.

I can believe this lady did a murder. She certain plans to do some murders now.

The day of the crime she’s ‘falsely’ accused of was April 10, 2015. Just felt like noting that.

(And noting that that fits right in with when a Roidmude could have taken someone’s identity. And noting that we haven’t seen Drive yet.)

(I know there’s like, zero chance it’s connected. Why would they link two different arcs like that? That is, aside from Fourze and Faiz, but that was different.)

(But, you know. Just saying.)

She’s almost definitely going after people who got her imprisoned, there’s no maybe about it. And, er, I can actually understand why Sougo would relate to that, what with. You know. The whole ‘demon king’ thing.

Except that he thinks she couldn’t have done it, because she was his First Love. Woz is all “suggestive raised eyebrows” while Geiz and Tsukuyomi just. They just want the inanity to end.

I fucking LOVE how everyone keeps making cat puns / noises with regards to this story. I mean. Really. She scratched you under the chin, dude. That’s weird.

(Nya.)

Weirdo guy in a coffee bar, insulting the coffee but still coming here, because the waitress is pretty. “Yay.”

Also, he’s got this fancy ring on. That’s probably significant, since P-Bandai’s releasing a ring for one of the Kiva characters. They had Amane wearing the Chalice themed necklace, too, so-

OH LOOK Weirdo’s eyes lit up gold when he was talking about ‘seeing a vision of the end of the world’! And his reflection is a blue wolf! You know! The one from Kiva! That the ring is modeled on! Okay!

Right! Legacy Characters! I somehow forgot that they’d try to bring someone from Kiva back!

Cut to Yuko being creepy at a pier, going after the Chief Prosecutor in her case, right up until Sougo and Geiz arrive.

Sougo’s got one question for you. (Just one? Sounds fake, but okay.)

Sougo: “Why do you want to be a queen?”

Yuko: “To correct the laws of this world, to enforce those correct laws.” (all said with an angry face)

Sougo: “So… it is to help people, then?” (confused)

Geiz: “Oh, for f- That’s not how you should go about it! This is just revenge!”

Geiz has the Trinity brain cell today, and he’s making good use of it!

Oh-ho-hohoho- Hora’s PISSED. She chose poorly. She’s gonna get some revenge of her own.

And now Yuko’s gonna do a violence, because all of them are ‘guilty.’

Geiz transforms, but Sougo doesn’t get that far.

No, he’s just gotten into some weird flashback to 2008.

So, a woman – possibly Yuko, I’m not sure, and ‘Tetsuya’ in one of those swan boats. And then it jumps to 2015. With a (presumably) dead female body… and Tetsuya standing over her.

Right. Sougo’s got time powers independent of the belt. He’s only ever looked into the future before now.

SOUGO! I don’t really care what sort of crisis of faith you’re having, you need to go help Geiz! He’s in a four on one, in an even less ideal location than you were! GO HELP HIM!

What’s this? Something’s going weird up in the sky. First to notice is Swartz, who looks up at the ripples of light. Then Tsukuyomi. (“The two of us aren’t so different after all.”)

And then Garulu. The one on the dock. Who I’d thought was a copy. But, um, maybe not. Maybe that’s the actual one? The real one was talking about a ‘vision of the future’ earlier, after all. But what about the other two Fangire? Are they the real ones? How is Another Kiva summoning them, anyway?

Geiz is knocked out of his transformation – and Sougo didn’t even get to activate his own. He never finished turning the belt before noticing a meteor streaking down the sky. The same one that Garulu was seeing in the coffee bar.

I don’t know WHAT that is that just hit that cliff face, but I don’t like the looks of it.

It – it’s alive? Is it an egg?

No no no NOPE it’s a space egg. It’s got a dude inside. It’s got a kitbash Rider inside. And he’s just blasted everyone down.

Everyone except the very noticeably absent Swartz.

Another Kiva tells him to stop – she is the law here.

But Ginga is from deep space. He doesn’t care about your Earth Laws. He’s going to blast you off of your cliff, too.

(I’m sorry, but I’m having a little trouble taking Ginga seriously with that UFO on his helmet.)

“Alright, let’s go!”

“WAIT NO! WAGA MAOU, STOP!”

“ASK US BEFORE YOU USE TRINITY, DAMNIT!”

Turning into a watch is not fun times.

“There is only one law. Everything dies.”

Yoooo I can take Ginga a little more seriously with those barriers. Yoooooo this guy is WAY overpowered.

Seiji Takaiwa is a god of suit acting~! Making just the little adjustments to show which loser is in control of Trinity moment to moment takes timing.

Also, the only person who can talk is the one in control? That’s. Unfortunate. For them. It’s HILARIOUS for us.

(Tsukyomi, I’m sorry, you don’t deserve to have to deal with these three.)

Nothing they throw at Ginga is working. He’s kicking everyone’s ass. Ass, singular, because bodysharing.

HOO BOY. We have our second female Another Rider… and she doesn’t get to be the main threat in her arc, either. Come on, Toei. … Let’s blame Inoue for this one. He’s here, after all.

Looks like Woz gets a Super mode in Ginga.

Well. At least he didn’t get completely shafted in the power-up regard, once his Character Decay set in.

Justice for Alain. (He! Deserved! Better! Yuujo Burst should have been IN SHOW damnit! Not relegated to the STUPID GOD AWFUL SPECTER V-CINEMA!)

(IT’S NOT EVEN HIS OWN SPECIAL! IT’S MAKOTO’S! IT COULD AT LEAST HAVE BEEN IN THE ‘LEGEND OF HERO ALAIN’ SPECIALS!)

(Yes I will always be salty about how Alain got treated.)

Well! Until next time!

[firebirdsdaughter]

Okay...

Finally sitting down to watch Zi-O ep 4...

Let’s game?

Well, no, actually no, we won’t, but I was trying to be thematic.

And in no particular order:

Okay, that explains it. When I saw the preview images it looked like they were talking to Emu, and then Geiz and Sougo both henshined and took a knee for some reason. It’s actually the other way round.

Geez, Emu. Since when were you this uncommunicative and unhelpful? That’s Taiga’s job!

Like seriously, you know these two are Kamen Riders. Just explain yourself to them instead of making weird vague statements.

Geiz at it again w/ the grump. Have I mentioned--you know where that’s going.

Tsukuyomi w/ the intercede again. I’m liking this trio.

Okay, I wanna know who Goggles is. The guy whose hand Geiz was holding in that future-flashback? A friend? Brother? This being Toei it’s unlikely to be a boyfriend, but it’s still possible. He looks like he mighta been a nice fellow, I’m sorry he died.

I guess this is a lot to take in, and Sougo is generally pretty slow on the uptake, it appears, so... But looks like he’s getting it now.

Tsukuyomi, I really hope you’re aware just how much of a problem child you just decided to adopt.

I actually agree w/ someone else I saw, I think. I kinda wish they would give her a better reason than ‘I don’t know’ for this. Like, I’m liking the idea that she doesn’t want her childhood friend to technically become a murderer by killing someone who is, at that point, still innocent, but this ‘I don’t know’ thing is kinda... meh to me. It doesn’t feel touching or sweet, and is even kinda out of character... But that’s just me. She’s super great, but she otherwise seems so decisive and confident that it’s a little odd.

OH MY GOD IT’S THAT CHURCH! I mean--it’s that wizard Bugster!

Fun fact, that Church is not just a Toei set. I have seen it in about FIVE other shows I think (don’t ask me to name them all, I can’t--but Kaname Jun was in one I think)

AH! Brave is here! But it’s back in 2016, episode... 2? Or maybe 3, but it would be when Hiiro literally just got there, so he’s still an ass. I mean, I still love him. But he was an ass.

Geiz, mister straight forward, just fucking informs them he’s from the future, I love him.

Maybe this has something to do w/ Hiiro’s sense that he should help them before... Aside from grumpy secondary solidarity, ofc.

‘From your perspective,’ Geiz, you are literally from 2068. I’m pretty sure, excepting folks from 2069 onward, that that’s the future from everyone’s perspective.

Also, to get this out of the way: AAAAAAH! SETO IS SO PRETTY! OH MY GOD I LOVE HIM SO MUCH EVEN WHEN HE’S A DICK! AND ESPECIALLY WHEN HE’S NOT!

Note: I don’t love him because he’s a dick, but what I love is grumpy, pretty much jerky characters who come out of that bc they start caring about someone or something (again, in Hiiro’s case). Did that make sense?

Also, I’m actually giggling bc of how much of a pompous ass my grumpy surgeon son was. The fact that this is literally like, right after he first showed up, means that he’s at peak dickishness and it’s really funny to look back.

Kids pulling on Geiz. God, honey, what were you expecting when you put that thing on? Well, at least they’re aware of how goofy it is.

On that note, ARE WE EVER GONNA SEE YOU WITHOUT IT?

Also, dear god, someone get this boy some fashion advice. I’ve SEEN that preview image sweetie. You canNOT dress yourself.

Oh my god, it’s the hospital helipad. Now I’m nostalgic.

Okay. Emu can teleport to game worlds now? Al... Alright then. You know what, whatever.

And Emu’s getting thrown around again. Some things never change. What’s still funny about this is still that Ijima Hiroki is (still) not a short man. He’s 5′ 10″. This, to me, makes how much Emu get’s thrown around utterly hilarious.

See, Emu. This is what happens when you don’t pull a Taiga, and discuss things w/ people. You’re the one who forced Hiiro to learn that, why are you doing it?

Aw, Sougo appreciates that Tsukuyomi is trying to save the future w/out killing him. Good kids.

Where’s that B99 ‘cool motive still murder’ picture? I mean, I know it’s a kid. But dude... You don’t have the right to other people’s lives (or body parts) just bc your son is dying.

Hm... I know people are thinking it’s named after Hiiro, but... What if it’s named after his dad? I mean, Kagami Haima was the director of the hospital, he had to start somewhere. To me that feels more logical? Bc it’s only been two years since Ex-Aid, that’s awfully fast to name a medical procedure... But it’s just a thought.

You know what, I bet Hiiro feels bad for brushing Geiz off in the past, so now he’s like ‘I must do everything I can to help these kids out bc when I met them before I was a jerk.’ Part of his ‘stop being an anti-social grump’ attempt. And he’s worried about Emu.

Does the Time Majin have an AI? How did it know to fly up to the roof right then? Is it telepathically connected to Sougo now?

So Uhr is helping Ora/Hora out? Maybe there is hope for a villain-family dynamic after all...

Also apparently that’s Takeru’s mech? Takeru has a mech? I really need to finish Ghost... But it’s either just for the sake of cameo, or it’s related to how Geiz got the Ghost Ride Watch. Now I’m wondering if he maybe stole the Drive and Ghost Watches from the Time Jackers? But if that’s the case, why did they have them? They usually use the Another Rider Watches...? Are Takeru and Shinnosuke okay? Oh my god, did Takeru die again? Actually, I guess Shinnoksuke also died a lot in that one movie so... Oh dear.

Is Sougo transforming in tiny spaces gonna be a thing now?

Come to think... Since the opening, we haven’t seen Woz. What’s prophet boy up to?

This tiny gremlin child who I adore and want to pinch the cheeks of just giggling to himself in his busted mech like a five year old.

Sorry, Geiz, you can’t beat the bounce.

Sougo just fucking slams this thing w/ the Time Majin.

And so, the path toward very reluctant and at first very awkward friendship begins. Let’s a-go kids!

But also god that boy is skinny. Honey, do you even HAVE hips? Are you okay?

Geiz is having feelings but is very confused right now. Punching things is generally a good venting method.

And the boys are still very bad at not being good at teamwork. Like, they’re already synchronising in pretty much every fight they’ve been in--not just in henshins but in attacks and so on.

Emu that looks NOTHING LIKE YOU, WHY would you call it a doppelgänger.

Since this is after Hiiro first showed up, it means that the two of them still don’t like each other (bc it took them a while to get there), so I’m not surprised that he wouldn’t call Hiiro immediately if something came up. Plus this may not show up bc CR relied on reports by witnesses and were in an abandoned warehouse. But then why is Emu...? Oh, I don’t know.

Was his henshin really always that deep?

Oh! There he is! Woz! I was wondering where you were! So, uh... Where were you?

Geiz: ‘Oh no, not again!’

Wow, he did the hoppity hop thing!

HE HAS GIANT BUMPS ON HIS ARMS! I LOVE THE GIANT BUMPERS ON HIS ARMS!

(I think they’re meant to be buttons?)

Aaaaand, right on cue, there Woz goes again.

Emu just like ‘okay then, let’s roll w/ this then, I guess!’

Wait, but the Brave and Snipe (and Genm, and then there’s Para-DX, and Poppy, and Cronus... Though I guess those last ones may not end up existing since they’re post-this?) Watches don’t seem to be in-show, so... Does that mean that Hiiro and Taiga keep their powers? Bc there was a Crozz-Z Ride Watch, so I now understand Ryuuga losing his, but there were so many Riders in Ex-Aid... Though maybe there’s a whole butterfly thing that simply by removing the primary everything is effected. Bc if you had to account for each individual Rider... Imagine how complex and difficult shows like Ryuki and Gaim would be to explain/sort through.

Hiroki has such a nice smile. Actually, pretty much everyone is Ex-Aid had a nice smile when they smiled.

Oh, god, yes. I really hope that the Rider trying to teach Sougo how to do the finisher in some way (miming for Emu, explaining for Sento) is a thing every time... Though I guess since they couldn’t get Gentaro we won’t get to see him do it... But maybe Takumi will? (I’ve never actually watched Faiz, so I have no idea what the finisher looks like)

Oh, hey. When Sougo hits him it says it in... Kanji, I think? But in Japanese characters of some kind instead of English.

ATTACK OF THE SUBTITLES!

Geiz standing of to the side trying to act cool while these two dorks help this man up.

... He’s wearing socks and... You know what, this is Japan. They’re probably his shoes for inside, and because he was running out to the ambulance with his dying son, he didn’t bother to change.

I love how Emu is like ‘who could we possibly... OH! That asshole!’ (again bc this is the very early season, back hen we didn’t like each other)

HE SAID IT! I guess they cut away so Seto didn’t actually have to eat the cake. Apparent he doesn’t actually like sweets? Maybe bc he’s such a sweetie. ^^

I really love it when the ones playing the ‘serious grumps’ are really adorably dorky and super nice. Like apparently, Seto was the funny and fun one, which I find so cute and hilarious.

Sougo here, getting into the groove of things during his second rodeo.

Emu’s like ‘are you two together?’ and Geiz is like ‘someone shoot me.’

Awwww. Of course Hiiro saved him. Though they haven’t shown us anything yet... So, maybe, even in the altered timeline, he and Emu still ends dup becoming close somehow? Can I pretend that’s the case? Seriously, Hiiro needs that kid. Otherwise he’s just gonna continue forgetting how to be human.

Why do you need another plate? But I think it’s cute how Junichiro is making so much food. I wonder if it’ll be like Mario in Zyuohger, where when he find out (if he doesn’t already know) he decides to just make life at the shop as homey as possible.

Geiz, maybe you should start using his name? Just to, you know, keep Uncle from getting suspicious?

ALSO WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WEARING WHY... I just can’t anymore. I love my dorky fashion disaster assassin son.

Here we are w/ the intense staring again. Wouldn’t be KR w/out it.

Geiz and Tsukuyomi be like ‘wow no pressure.’ Seriously, Geiz looks like he’s having a small panic attack back there.

He looks very pretty, though.

Aw, they’re keeping their Ride Watches together!

Well, there’s clearly a friendship theme, so I’m hoping there’s a level of deepening the bonds that just started forming in this episode. Unfortunately, I know nothing about Faiz other than apparently Kaixa is a horrible person (given that the preview images imply he’s strangling some poor girl, I am inclined to agree), so I can’t make any guesses there.

All I ask for Christmas is ONE episode where Geiz doesn’t wear that damn collar thing. I know it’s only been four eps but just ONE.

And, in final news, looks like they’re switching the Watches around.

Okay! Well, that's that for now. Now, my head hurts and I still want pizza, so... Not much else to say. Imaginary pizza for anyone who read all of this, you really didn’t need to do that.

I’m gonna pretend Hiiro and Emu are still friends somehow. Having a good time here, looks like we’re looking at another solid trio and I love it. Also, w/ OOO and Ghost apparently coming up... Good times.

[washipink]

Ryuki Episode 21

I’ve noticed convenient little interruptions like the Rhino Monster wanting vengeance come up a lot. Which does make it more surprising when those interruptions don’t come up and someone just straight up drops dead. I don’t see it coming when it happens because I keep thinking “Something will save them” and it doesn’t.

Who? Is that someone Asakusa killed?

Ren is finally telling everyone else what HAPPENED. Finally, Shinji knows a way to help Ren cope. I understand he thinks Eri can be revived with the power of the last Rider, but is that... Is that worth it?

Shinji seems to be asking himself the other side of this question. Is stopping this fighting worth Eri’s life? Is that a decision he’s even fit to make? Could he bring himself to get Ren to give up on Eri? No course of action the Riders could take would be an easy one. Whatever happens, it will be difficult. Someone will get hurt.

Ren... You don’t want this. You’re trying so hard to push Shinji away because you know it’s NOT what you want.

Ryuki forces its viewers to ask themselves tough questions. Do the lives of the Riders outweigh the life of an innocent? Is all this to save himself or does he really want Riders to stop killing each other for their sake? Even Shinji is doubting himself.

It’s not really fair of me to ask Ren to leave Eri behind, is it? As much as I want this fighting to end, I can’t force Ren to stop and neither can Shinji.

Of course, as I wax philosophical about this, Kanzaki Shiro appears to ruin everything once more.

Regardless of Shiro’s prodding, I respect that Shinji is spending so much time thinking about what he considers to be the right answer. When I was getting into this show, I was told it would ask questions of what exactly justice is. And so far? Its delivered. I’m still not sure what Shinji will decide justice means. In this situation, he’s forced to sacrifice at least one life. What choice does he really have?

This doesn’t seem like an amazing idea. But if Asakura is going to but in and take over for Ren, then I guess this is one way to settle this fight. Today, Shinji fights to kill. I wonder what that changes about his fighting style.

In previous encounters, he held back his advent card. Maybe this time, Dragreder will get to go ham.

Asakura taking a pot shot at Shinji before they could even transform is a nice detail. It removes the order from the fight and makes it truly feel like a life-and-death scrap. Asakura as a character has done a lot to add to the show’s stakes. The first thing he does is break out of prison and hold a little girl at gunpoint.

I barely talked about Yui’s subplot this episode because I had so much to say about what Shinji was going through. I feel like I should remedy this because it looks like we’re getting some answers. Hopefully Yui’s childhood memories offer some explaination as to why Shiro is like this.

Asakura’s preemptive strike really did a number on Shinji. I don’t like where this is going.

Oh shit, Ren with the change of heart.

EXCUSE ME? So Ouja’s contracting a second monster. Does that mean he’s going to be even more powerful than he was before? What are we gonna do about it?

What a way to end the episode. Next time, Shiro’s gonna meddle with Miyuki, it looks like.

At the series’s outset, I expected Shiro to be a far smaller player than he ended up being. There was no reason for me to think he’d appear often to mess with the Riders. But instead of just sitting back and watching the chaos, he actively tries to make things worse. And he’s only been appearing more frequently as we approach the series’s halfway point.

[gameridernews]

Ex-Aid review: Choh Superhero Taisen

Ex-Aid's spring movie, from a distance, just looked like the familiar Rider/Sentai crossover format doing its usual thing. But recently, a producer at Toei has confirmed that they will no longer be doing crossover movies in the spring, meaning that Ex-Aid - turns out - has given us our final "so-called spring movie" experience.

In this world where weird and questionably written crossovers may cease to exist, let's see if it at least went out with something akin to a bang. 

Choh Superhero Taisen is a bit of a silly name. I mean, it implies this is a SUPER version of the usual spring movie crossover, but to be a little more accurate, this movie is... kind of like a better version of the first couple swings they took at the Rider VS Sentai angle.

To recap, we got a Fourze-era crossover that did not really give a good first impression, then a Wizard-era crossover I can't remember a single thing about except Space Shocker. Gaim and Drive went the route of Rider VS Rider, both in kinda interesting but shaky executions, and Ghost had a focus on the original Kamen Rider making a modern day appearance.

Oh and just to quickly establish the timeline here, Maximum Gamer premiered in the show and Kuroto got what he deserved. Bit of a shame since I’m sure he’d have a lot to say about the kid in this movie. Anyway, let's begin!

The movies opens up in Korea being attacked by the game Xevious. The Kyurangers send all of their attack stock footage at the invaders, which you would think the Cyber Rescue Center would know about but they are instead dealing with a strange patient who apparently has a tail. Oh hey, Zyuoh Tiger!

The way the movie plays out beyond this point is really weird. It feels like when Inoue wrote the OOO portion of Movie Taisen Core - things are oddly slow and somber for a series known for being bright and peppy. 

It’s uncanny. Hiro literally proclaims he will operate on Zyuoh Tiger even if she's an animal and no one bats an eye at that comment. That’s how weird it is. And when they see the Kyuranger mech land in the middle of the city, it’s treated as a quiet ominous moment like something bad is about to go down.

Okay, to be fair, that part is ominous because the Kyurangers are here for Poppy since they think this video game character is linked to other video games attacking reality - I guess since they have a lot of research at their disposal, because they know what Bugsters are!

But just as the Ex-Aid VS Kyuranger stuff begins, it quickly ends once Shishi Red... decides Kamen Riders are heroes because there's a game called Choh Superhero Taisen that Riders and Rangers are both part of. I mean, he's not wrong?

So yeah, that's a thing! Choh Superhero Taisen is a game that’s invaded this world and challenges Ex-Aid. Among its returning Riders/Rangers is an alternate version of Hiro, transforming into Kamen Rider True Brave. 

I was VERY interested in learning the backstory of this character - is it an alternate universe thing, or what? Turns out, he's a video game character... and for story reasons, it’s a Hiro who took a different path in life. 

It sorta makes sense, I promise.

Things get interesting once Ex-Aid and Poppy enter the world of Choh Superhero Taisen, which is more or less a bunch of Toei's usual filming locations but with returning actors accompanying them!

The first being Kyoryu Gold from Kyoryuger, Utsusemimaru - or Utchy for short. I watched at least half of Kyoryuger so I can appreciate his cameo. He does his Brave Daze thing and he gets some good action. 

More importantly, you can't have a bunch of returning actors without Toei proving they can somehow keep getting all of the Imagin from Den-O. And I can understand someone being sick of them by now, even if you were a fan before, but the scene where Ex-Aid has to pick his team makes me smile. Although... considering ToQGer's premise, should Urataros really be flirting with one of the girls? 

MOVING SWIFTLY ALONG, Emu chooses a "Gorider" team, with Momotaros being Pink - it's a pun. Ex-Aid uses Robot Action Gamer to cheat his way into the Red slot, which I kinda wish someone called him out on.

Ao Ninger makes an easy return as Blue, providing a nice callback to Ninninger as he basically takes charge and tell's Emu to pick his master, Magi Yellow, who taught him magic - but ends up calling Beet Buster from Go-Busters instead, because same actor. That was cute.

Lastly, filling out the team’s Green slot, the out-of-nowhere return of Zolda from Ryuki! I... y'know, it's best they didn't address his cancer since this is supposed to be the "game world" Zolda. Instead, they lean into his lawyer-ness - it felt very appropriate for him to dismiss the Gorider thing and only take part if they signed a contract. I also enjoy how he keeps referring to Momotaros as Goro-chan. It’s cute. I don’t have the heart to tell him Goro is in Zawame. 

With a team decided upon, this starts to feel like an entirely different movie with Riders VS Rangers. My only gripe here was I could've used at least one more fight. You get a nice tournament chart that shows you all of the different fights happening offscreen, and to be quite honest I needed to see the Dandy team in action.

Right, so I should talk about the kid now. There's a patient Hiro was responsible for, who made the Choh Superhero Taisen game and disappeared afterwards. This is where things get interesting because Hiro has this logic of "I won't perform surgery on a patient unless they want it", which was used well in the show. Hiro presented the kid a chance to be cured, and he said no, so Hiro reluctantly accepted the kid’s choice. 

Essentially, Alternate Hiro was made in this kid's game world as a personification of Hiro's guilt, and acts as his aide. It kind of works. But it kind of doesn't? Which is really a good way to describe spring movies as a whole. 

However, I dig the alternate Hiro in concept. He isn't an evil version of the character like you'd expect - he has some sense of justice to him, he's protecting this kid after all, it's just that he's wrong in the eyes of the actual Hiro because it conflicts with his own ethics. This may be the best part of the movie, or at least the part with the most depth.

Oh right, so Ex-Aid and the others on his team become Kamen Sentai Gorider... which is a combination of the original Sentai and the original Kamen Rider... and it's about out of place as it sounds. 

It feels right at home with all this chaos, I guess. But I don't have much to say about it beyond that. I still gotta watch the actual Gorider special.

Not a shocker for something to feel out of place in one of these movies. You know what’s also out of place? Shocker! Yes, the original villains are back again, and this time-- they don't have a different name, but I'd like to call them Game Shocker, because it implies they're living on in yet another form.

They also have a new young leader, Shocker Leader III to be exact, which I was admittedly interested in learning more about. The actor made a big deal about how he thinks of Shocker as a group that admires the Kamen Riders, quoted saying "I want you to understand Shocker's feelings".

In all honesty, though, the character doesn't stand out to me as being any different than a generic Rider movie villain, and would have probably been better off in a different movie. A shame too, because I love the idea it sounded like he was hinting at.

The movie is all over the place, and there's some things I wanna talk about but feel like I don't need to dedicate a whole screencap to. Let's go through these real quick...

Among the many cameos, we get the Kamen Rider Amazons crew, which includes Alpha, Omega and the then-new Neo! I haven't seen Amazons and this cameo taught me... they fight aggressively. I’ll be honest, I really felt nothing from this cameo. But I can appreciate how they added the dramatic lighting Amazons is known for. And Ex-Aid cleverly added some game logic to the fight by looking for a hidden power-up. He probably connects all of the pork chops in Castlevania. 

The Zyuohgers make a cameo! That's pretty fun considering this is one show later. Unfortunately this cameo also made me realize Amu really did not have much to do with the story. I legit forgot about her while writing all this.

Brave uses Galaxian Quest Gamer, which wins the award for most pointless and rushed movie form debut. Like, I think he put on the armor and fought some dudes real quick and you never see it again. Galaxian played some part in the game world destruction earlier, but now that I think about it, you could replace that with Shocker to make them fit in better...

To end on a positive note, Ex-Aid uses a special giant Energy Item with Maximum Gamer to grow to Sentai mech size and fight alongside the Kyurangers' mech, which was a very fun visual since it involved a unique transformation in which Ex-Aid grows in size as the armor builds around him. This felt like a "They knew this was cool and wanted to take it a step further" moment.

Since I sped through all of that, let's get to the ending.

There's a nice moment with the kid and Naga from the Kyurangers, as they both share the inability to properly express emotions, and I can appreciate how they made use of Naga even if I have little exposure to Kyuranger - that was nice and heartfelt.

Through a combination of Ex-Aid's previous efforts and Brave's current efforts (pretty cool having both of them involved there), the kid is saved, everyone who got sucked into the game world is back out, and the status quo returns to normal.

The credits roll with a nice collection of cards based on all the characters in the movie.

So how did this one turn out? Well, as a movie, pretty awful. As a toku movie, not great. As a Kamen Rider spring crossover movie, it's a'ight I guess? I feel like I'm a lot more forgiving of these than others - even though I'm not opposed to making fun of things like Tsukasa's bad hair day or Space Shocker, I do get something out of these, so that's why I watch them.

With the idea in mind that this is the final spring crossover movie we'll get out of Kamen Rider and Sentai - as the upcoming spring movie is gonna be about Amazons instead and the future beyond that is uncertain - I think they could have ended on a far more typical clusterfuck note. Arguably, they did? But I think among the far-too-many ideas this one had, some of the ideas were good. And for a movie trying to make heroes fight other heroes, it's doing so in a fun way by making use of Ex-Aid’s game motif.

I'm gonna miss these movies. They weren't great, but they were fun eye candy. I'm gonna be interested in seeing what they do with that spring movie slot - will Amazons be the last spring movie entirely, or will it be Toei's go-to for "We just wanna make some kind of thing" movie projects? Only time will tell!

I think you know what comes next, right? I’ve got the first winter movie reviewed, now the spring movie - so obviously spinoff material next. Or the summer movie! Whichever happens first. 

[ashroseevans]

Pokemon Ultra Sun 2 - 1

Ten years have passed since the events of Ultra Sun. Rainbow Rocket has been defeated, Lusamine's plan has been put to a stop. Gladion left for Kanto and Lillie and Hau stayed on Alola. A lot has changed in those ten years. _____ is still the reigning Alolan Champion, Hau is now the Kahuna of Melemele Island as well as one of the four members of the Elite Four. Lillie is Co-President of the Aether Foundation along with her brother who is still traveling through the regions. The Island Challenge has also changed quite a lot as well. Kantonian Traditions mixed with Alolan's to create an Island Challenge unique and fun for trainers of all regions.

However there is a group of people who threaten the new peace and prosperity of Alola. The Nefarious Team Sun don't like these new changes to Alola and have started to cause trouble. Will our heroes reunite to take them down? And will _____ be able to reconnect with someone she hasn't seen in over a decade? Will peace be restored to Alola once again or is this team more powerful then all those that came before them?

My hand reached up to wipe the tears away from the face of the child that came to challenge me. I was crouched in front of them and gave them a small smile.

"It's okay, kiddo," I said to them. "A loss doesn't mean that it's over forever. You just have to train up more and get stronger. Think of this as a starting point. There's always room for improvement."

The little boy sniffled and rubbed at his eyes, looking up at me. "R-really?" He said.

I nodded and ruffled his hair. "Really. I'll still be here to challenge again whenever you want." I smiled reassuringly. "And if you would like, I'd be more then happy to train with you, too."

The boys eyes lit up and he lowered his hands. The look of childlike wonder and excitement was something I never grew tired of. "Really? You'd do that?"

I nodded and put my hands on my knees. "Of course!"

"Wow, thank you!! You're so nice!" He said and he grinned widely. His two front teeth were missing and it brought a smile to my face to match his.

"I'm here to help the trial-goers just like the Gym Leaders and Kahunas," I said and straightened up, offering the boy a hand. "Now how about I get you home?"

"Yes! Thank you!" He said.

I smiled down at him and I left the boy out of the Pokémon League.

*     *     *

After I has led the boy back to his home on Ula'Ula island. I took a Pokéball from my belt and threw it up in the air. It opened and Charizard popped out. I caught the ball again and pet my dragon-like Pokémon. He made a sound of approval and looked at me.

"Ready to go home?" I asked.

With another sound of approval Charizard bent down and let me climb up onto his back. With a few pats on his neck he took off, his wings flapping hard to get us airborne. I loved flying on my Pokémon, more then I enjoyed Mantine Surfing. The air whipping through my hair... the reflection of the sun on the ocean below... seeing the islands down below, little blots of land in between swaths of blue water. It was exhilarating.

Finally we landed in front of my moms house on Melemele Island. I took out Charizard's Pokéball and returned him before clipping the ball back to my belt. Without even bothering to knock I walked inside, our Kantonian Meowth announcing my presence by meowing and pawing at my legs. Mom was in the kitchen cooking and when I leaned against the counter, she turned and smiled at me.

"I wasn't expecting you so soon. I'm still cooking dinner, sweetheart," she said.

I simply shrugged. "Not a lot of challengers today. Honestly I thought I was going to be late because I walked a little boy home who challenged me." I rested my chin in the palm of my hand. "He was sweet and I felt bad beating him, but... It would be cruel of me to let him beat me only for him to be beaten by someone else."

"I suppose you have a point there," Mom said and turned back to the stove. "Though, are you sure you don't want to pass the title of Champion on to someone else? It's been ten years and I know you've gotten... bored of it. Even Hau has seen it, though I guess that's not saying much since he sees you basically every day, what with him being in the Elite Four now and all."

"You're rambling, mom," I said and shrugged. "And sure, battling isn't as fun as it has been since I became champion, but part of that is my fault. I could have stopped training my Pokémon so much, but I don't want to give my title to just anyone. I've grown... attached to it, I guess."

"If you say so," Mom replied. "I just want you to be happy, sweetheart."

"Thanks," I said and stood up. "Let me know when dinner is ready. I'm going to turn on the TV."

"Sure thing."

I walked from the kitchen to the living room and sat down on the couch. Pulling out another Pokéball I released my Sylveon, and allowed the colorful pink fairy Pokémon to curl up on my lap as I flipped through the channels. I settled on the news, as nothing particularly bad happened on Alola and it was always nice to hear about cute, heart warming stories.

But today was different then all the rest.

"A Nefarious Team Sun has attacked two Kantonian native trainers earlier today," the newscaster was saying. "Making off with three of their Pokémon. We still don't know what these people want with the Kantonian trainers or their Pokémon, but I don't think it's anything particularly good. Back to you, Joe."

"Thanks Natalia," the man said as the camera shifted over. "Those Team Sun guys... it's been a few months since they first started showing up, but the violence has only escalated. They haven't revealed their goals yet, but I think things will only get worse before they start getting better. I just hope it doesn't start getting too bad."

"Me too," said the co-anchor. "Me too."

"The state of the world today..." I looked up to see Mom standing behind me as she was holding two plates of food in one hand and a bowl in the other. "You haven't run into any of those Team Sun hooligans have you?"

I shook my head. "No. The Elite Four and I decided to ban them from the Pokémon League because of the violence they start against the other trainers."

"Well, good," Mom said. "I know you can handle yourself, being 21 now and all, but still, I worry."

"I know," I said and held out my hand for my plate.

She handed me one as well as the bowl and I realized it was full of Pokébeans. Sylveon perked her head up and sniffed at the bowl. I giggled and set it down next to me on the couch. She made a happy sound before she dug into the bowl of beans.

"Thanks," I said and smiled at Mom as she sat down next to me.

"No problem. I should be thanking you for coming home at least once a week to visit me," she said and ruffled my hair.

I swatted at her hands before I started to eat.

*     *     *

When I returned home after dinner and a chat with mom, RotomDex popped out of my bag and hovered around my head as I bustled around, getting ready to sleep.

"Those Team Sun guys look like serious business," Rotom said.

Letting out a sigh, I flopped down on the couch and threw my head back over the top. I let out a yawn and closed my eyes. Then I looked at it and shrugged. "We'll just take care of them like we did Team Rainbow Rocket if they get out of hand."

I couldn't believe that it had been ten years since Rainbow Rocket took over the Festival Plaza and tried open the Ultra Wormholes. Ten years since I completed the Island Challenge and became the Alolan Champion. Ten years since... Gladion left for Kanto. I let out a sigh and picked out the Ultra Ball that had the Silvally he gave me as a Type: Null. Well... actually Miss Wicke gave it to me after he left, but the idea is the same.

Turning it around so the button was out, I released the Pokémon. Silvally stood in my living room and shook out its head and then looked at me. I smiled and sat up straight to pat its head. It looked kind of sad, but it affectionately pressed its head into my hand and closed its eyes.

"You miss him too, huh?" I said.

Silvally nodded and I reached into my bag and pulled out a rainbow pokébean from my bag and handed it to my Pokémon. While it ate the bean, RotomDex spoke again.

"You know you could go find him. Take time off from taking challengers. I'm sure the Elite Four and the Gym Leaders will understand," he said.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, no. What would I say? Before I challenged the Elite Four ten years ago he said that while we aren't enemies we weren't exactly friends. It would just be stupid. Besides, I can't neglect my responsibilities."

"A lot can change in ten years," Rotom said. "Just look at the Island Challenge."

I let out a sigh. Rotom was right that a lot has changed since I did my Island Challenge. The trials became Gyms and the Captains became Gym Leaders. We even found a dragon gym leader to take over the Dragon Gym. It was a man by the name of Ryuki and he had challenged me after I had become champion. Naturally when I asked that he become a gym leader, he accepted. The Kahuna's were still Kahuna's and they were the last challenge the Challengers had to face before moving on to the next island. It was an interesting mix of Alolan and Kantonian traditions and it worked really well.

"Things may have changed on the island, Rotom, but things wouldn't have changed with me and Gladion when I haven't seen or heard from him since he left."

"You're friends with his sister, why don't you find out from her what he's up to. You could say that Silvally misses him."

I sighed and shook my head. "I'll pass. No need for Lillie to know that I'm worried about that idiot."

"All right. Well... you should get some sleep then I guess," Rotom said before he went back into my bag.

I stared sightlessly for a moment before Silvally nudged me with its head. I blinked and looked at it, petting its muzzle.

"Sleep is probably a good idea, huh?" I said. "I have to meet Hau and Lillie tomorrow anyway."

Picking up the pokéball again, I returned Silvally before I stood up and walked into my room.

Read more Pokemon Stories (and others) here  

[pkmnomegaverse]

Do you have any HC’s for Zossie/Mallow and Ryuki/Sophocles?

I’m still debating some things, so these could easily change.  I actually have a doc going right now with ideas for Alola couples/fankids, so I’ll post a combinations of those along with the set hcs I have.

- Zossie/Mallow (EelGrassShipping)

[Set HCs] The ship name (and even the pairing itself) was suggested to me by @moenecropyromancer​. As Zossie’s name comes from Zostera, the genus for eelgrass, and Mallow is a grass type trainer, it was an obvious choice for a ship name.    

Their relationship sort of starts out as a fling.  Kind of.  Zossie and Dulse travel around Alola asking about Elio, getting people’s opinion of him.  Which is how Zossie and Mallow meet. They more get caught up in things so the relationship progresses very quickly.  Caught up in the heat of the moment, one thing leads to another, and bam, they get Tilia.  

Their daughter, Tilia, inherits a fair amount of Zossie’s alien characteristics.  She has blue skin, orange pupils, and an inability to handle the harsh sunlight of Alola, which mostly translates to her getting heatstroke and burning easily when exposed to too much sunlight.  From Mallow she inherits her green hair and green eyes.    

Tilia is Starlord. Minus the dead mom bit (unless I go hard and Ulu raises her). Zossie is essentially a disappeared dad because she didn’t know Mallow was pregnant.   Dulse was very firm on them returning home, which is why Zossie leaves despite liking Mallow and this version of Alola. Gotta live their own lives in their own world, not throw that all away for some girl.  Constantly opening up wormholes to go back and forth is bad because it destabilizes things and attracts Ultra Beasts.  Makes the area a hotspot for weirdness.

This setups means easy drama for Mallow since she has to deal with the difficulty of raising a half-alien child with unique needs without a parent who would easily understand and have solutions.   Mallow does her best and handles things fairly well though.  Remains optimistic through it all. She works in her family’s restaurant, Tilia assisting her with cooking once she’s old enough.

[My Musings] Because the pairing itself has potential, I like the idea of either Tilia trying to find a way to meet Zossie, or Zossie coming back years later and rekindling her relationship with Mallow (plus actually being a parent to Tilia).    

Maybe once Zossie comes back, she makes the decision to forsake her world and live with her new family.   That’s the happy end.  Other end is she already has a family now in her other world so her and Mallow are doomed, but that defeats the purpose of exploring this couple.  

I do think a younger sibling for Tilia would be interesting.  Either half-sibling (cause doesn’t struggle with being half-alien) or a step-sibling.  If half-sibling route, the father is someone who is unimportant.  Mallow is still single momming it.  Or she breaks up with the guy/lady by the time Zossie is back.

- Ryuki/Sophocles (PalilaShipping)

[Set HCs] The ship name comes from a type of Hawaiian bird called a palila, which has a very close ecological relationship with the māmane tree (Mamane being Sophocles’ Japanese name).  Papilas build their nests in māmane trees and despite the seeds of the tree being highly poisonous, they are the primary part of the palila’s diet, as the birds are immune.  The name implies an ability to coexist peacefully despite what would be a normally toxic situation.

The conception of their son, Mucuna, was 100% a hook up leads to baby situation. They are working together, collaborating on one of Ryuki’s concerts, and Sophocles ends up crushing on this cool punk guy pretty hard.  Ryuki teasingly flirts back a bit, fueling things, since he’s like that in general.  When Sophocles heat hits, one thing leads to another and bam, baby.  They’re fairly isolated when this happens, setting up the concert along a route.  Thus forest sex.  

Despite not actually dating at the time, they do try to make things work because Ryuki does want to be there for baby Mucuna.  And Sophocles does like the guy.  It’s maybe not the way he’d like them to get together, but it’s better than nothing.

[My Musings] It’s not discussed between them, but Ryuki is likely the type to hook up with groupies and such and just not say anything because, to him, it doesn’t mean anything.  Unspoken he’s cheating on Soffy. There are multiple drama routes here.

(1) Ryuki (or really Sophocles) gets baby dropped on him from one of the hookups.  Thus Soffy raising Mucuna’s half-siblings.

(2) Sophocles cheats on Ryuki because if his sort of mate is doing it, he can too.  But then baby #2 cause drama. Anyone is fine, but a hot dude is preferred. Cross is an option if jerk route is desired. So now he’s the one at fault for the Mucuna’s half-sibling to raise.  Ryuki might not care that much tbh.

(3) Leaves his cheating man and settles down in a new region with someone else.  He 100% cannot stay in Alola for this route.  So I’m at the impasse again of needing a ship for him. I can see a nice science man being an option.  But the who is the question.  Conway?  Watch more movies for ideas???

[sailor-cresselia]

Zi-O 21; both raw AND subbed~!

Advance Warning: I have never seen Ryuki, and it’s probably going to show. A lot, if only because I have no connection to whoever the Guest Characters are, and what any issues they bring in could mean. I’ve seen Marcosatsu’s History Of Ryuki though, so that should help a little. (three links, because he wound up doing it in three parts)

Starting off with watching the Raw!

BlackWoz’s Storytime Vault doesn’t have much to offer, aside from a worrying angle at the end.

I’m impressed by Uhr’s control with reversing the damage he’s doing to that mirror. Of course, he’s paying almost zero attention to Schwartz in the process, but there’s a method to his being a little brat this time.

He’s trying to get the attention of some guy in Ryuki’s mirror world.

Sounds like his idea is “So, my new candidate? He’s from another world. Remember how that Tsukasa guy traveled? It’s kinda like that, but not.”

(What was going on in Ryuki?! Also, how many endings is this going to make for that season? Because I seem to remember hearing that there’s like, five? At least?)

I like the touch with Another Ryuga’s name and year – they’re backwards, like you’d see in a mirror.

Sougo’s DEFINITELY using Gun Mode a lot more recently. I like it’s finisher with Double, though – it’s basically a smaller scale version of the CycloneTrigger Memory Break. … What was that one called? Ah, there it is. Trigger Aerobuster.

Names are important. I’m doing my best to get them right.

But it’s basically that, with purple shots in the center of the wind bursts.

… of course, it gets reflected right back at them, because MIRRORS, but still. Points for fighting at a distance, especially with that dragon arm – that was doing some damage, it looked like.

Geiz’s Drive armor is back! (I’ve missed the shift cars, so it’s nice to at least see Max Flare, Funky Spike, and Midnight Shadow’s tires again.)

But again, mirrors.

Tsukuyomi: So, you lost him?

Sougo: Well, yes, but also we had to help the injured construction worker.

Geiz: And everything got sent back at us, so…

blah blah, ‘whats the deal with the time jackers’ blah…

“What IS this Day of Oma you mentioned, anyway?” Good question, bud.

“Well, in our history, it’s the day that Oma Zi-O took over the world.” Geiz, I get that you’re upset. But. Um. What did you just do to that chessboard?

As far as I know, you’re not able to cause shockwaves. Not just by symbolically slamming a chess piece down. ...I don’t know anything about chess, but I’m assuming that piece is the Black King. Wiping out all of his opposition in one strike… along with all of his allies.

Sougo retaliates with “And the one WhiteWoz is from, says that you stopped that from happening.” He uses the White Knight to knock down the Black King, leaving the Knight alone on the board.

And then we have the Time Jackers, trying to get someone else altogether in charge. Black Bishop takes out the White Knight. The Time Jackers are from the same timeline as Tsukuyomi and Geiz, after all.

That day is when the world’s future is decided… ooh, ominous.

… drat, have to skip the next bit of exposition, but while they’re outside talking about… victims? I think?

I hear that same sound that heralded Geiz’s Time Mazine arriving back in Episode one.

Okay, so the victims are all connected to the magazine/journal/website from Ryuki? Makes sense.

Oh man, Shinji’s already dead?! Welp, that’s it, arc over, time to go home. (dusts off hands)

Hm. He covered up all the reflective surfaces – which would include windows and vents. Because Mirror World.

Of course, that poses a problem when you use a gas heater.

Okay, so at this point, while I was watching, Over-Time posted their subs. So I just got the script, went back to the beginning, and started over.

Well, at least BlackWoz is going along with the nicknames for now. I guess he understands the need for the distinction.

Hm. Schwartz seems to think that Geiz is going to be trying for the throne on the Day of Oma. But, sir, have you met this kid? Yes, yes you have, we’ve seen you interact with him. There is nearly no way that Geiz would ever want to be in charge.

...I say nearly, because time travel and predestination and all of that jazz. WhiteWoz is screwing with the kids head.

HUH. Uhr’s logic isn’t even “it’s kinda like that Decade guy”, he was specifically told about the Mirror World by Tsukasa. (insert a certain 10-year-old meme here.)

And what’s even more interesting than that… is that Schwartz didn’t know about the Mirror World.

And we’ve already seen that Schwartz can go to other timelines, as per when he created the Another Shinobi Watch.

Hm, looks like we’re in for another variation of ���not the Another Rider you think he is’, aren’t we? Another Ryuga has the last portion of his name covered by what appear to be burnmarks. Much like how Another OOO’s year was cracked, so it could appear to be 2016 while actually being 2010.

Oh dear GOD they’ve been fighting Another Ryuga for a WEEK. He just keeps showing up and disappearing. (Because mirrors, not that they know that.)

“Why do they keep getting harder to fight?” Well, Sougo, it’s probably largely because we’re about out of Phase Twos, and the Earlier Heisei Riders were pretty brutal, from what I’ve heard. Plus, you keep getting teleporters involved, so that doesn’t help in the slightest.

Thank you for finally asking what the Day of Oma is, though.

(Low INT, high-ish WIS.)

“Well, what future do the two of you want?” Asks the noodle with a pretty decent Charisma stat. And neither Geiz or Tsukuyomi actually have an answer for him.

(Ow, my heart.)

Okay, all the victims followed Ore Journal online, but it has since gone completely under, since it just couldn’t keep up with the times.

I was right on the money about Shinji, though, he clearly knows full well about the reflection teleportation, and now so do The Kids.

GEIZ I UNDERSTAND YOUR LOGIC. BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN I HAVE TO LIKE IT.

“Beat him in the time before the attack returns.” Because there’s a lag before the mirror shield shows up, so there’s a brief window of time. But an attack that would take it out that quickly would return just as powerful… directly at where it came from. Also known as the Rider who launched it.

And also also known as Geiz, if he gets his way.

Because a soldier who can’t defeat his enemies isn’t much of a soldier, now is he?

(Thanks a lot, eps 15 and 16. Thanks.)

Aaaand Uncle Tokiwa doesn’t actually know Woz’s name! All he could do for the Watch was clean it up… oooooh...

Sougo’s next powerup has an awful lot of that burnished gold on it. The same, or almost the same, tone as Oma Zi-O’s.

“Hello, my overlord~!” “Not. Now.”

Good boy, Sougo. And you even met this weeks tribute, and didn’t realize it!

I still don’t buy the “he doesn’t remember” thing, by the way, especially given the mirrored surfaces – how would he have known without having been Ryuki? Does he know about all the other victims? I don’t think you’ve actually talked to him yet. But I’ll let the memory ‘detail’ slide for now, since it looks like BlackWoz is actually being straightforward at the moment…

Aaand Sougo’s desperately trying to ignore him. Fair. Since that second Zi-O watch is tied to him becoming evil and all. Decent WIS stat, and also BlackWoz’s idea of ‘subtle’ is very much not so.

Meanwhile, with Geiz and Tsukuyomi… Yeah. He doesn’t plan to come out of this fight. Because what good is a soldier who can’t win?

And also, he, too, knows he is being stalked by his own personal Woz.

“What’s your end goal? If I come out on top, what’s your future like?”

“Just like this, a peace as if time has stopped.”

… Hi, yeah, not here for that phrasing at all, actually. Having just come out of HUGtto! Precure, wherein ‘stopping time so that despair can’t happen’ was kind of the villians whole thing, I’m trusting you even less than before.

Nothing can disturb the peace if nothing moves again, now can it?

But for Geiz and Tsukuyomi, literal veterans who have seen armies destroyed in the wave of an arm… they don’t have that frame of reference, now do they? They might just hear the “a time not unlike the one here” aspect.

“Hey, think I can use that notebook?”

“Nope, nuh-uh, OP reality warper powers are mine and mine alone.”

OOF. Right. Uhr contracted Mirror World Shinji, didn’t he? Which, of course, means that his existence is tied to Regular World Shinji’s existence. Can’t defeat the Another Rider? Take out his other link to living.

WhiteWoz and his “Obstacles are for killing” attitude does not sit well with Geiz.

“Hey, other me! You want revenge on that guy, right? The one who attacked you? Of course ya do! Why not!”

Meanwhile, Regular Shinji looks like he’s having thoughts along the lines of “I’m not going back to the belt! I’m out, man! I finished! I’ve finished like FIVE times already! Let me retire!”

Huh. The smudge over ‘Ryuga’ is gone. Neat. (aaand at which point I realized i’ve probably been spelling it wrong, and went back to fix all the places I used two ‘u’s on instinct.)

Clever, clever Uhr. “You can’t get a watch from a person who never existed, from a world that no longer ever was.”

...well, Schwartz could go to alternate timelines, so… Hey, Geiz, Tsukuyomi, Sougo, did any of you happen to get Tsukasa’s contact info?

Also, Tsukasa, did you have to clue the Time Jackers in on the ‘other worlds’ thing? I’m just saying, that might come back to bite you.

You are coming back, right? You don’t get to drop cryptic ‘I’m destroying this world first’ comments, and give tips to the assorted groups, and then just never come back.

It’s rude.

We need some sort of follow-through on this stuff, at least.

Geiz attempts his suicide attack… but Sougo knocks him out of the kick before he can gain momentum…

“I’m not letting you die, damnit! You still need to make sure I don’t go evil, and I’m definitely tempted by this watch right now...”

and then said watch doesn’t even try to activate.

Aaaand then Sougo gets wrestled into the Mirror World.

(Isn’t that place supposed to be super fatal if you don’t have an Advent Deck?)

Aaaah! The backwards writing, and the fact that some of it is glitching is bad enough. But the lack of sound? Nope, I’m not here for that at all. That’s never a good sign.

Although Kudos to O-T for getting the subtitles for some of those signs. Well done.

So, yeah, sorry Sougo, it’s not 3-Days-From-Now You this time. (But seriously, what happened to him?) This time it’s Evil You.

Not even 50-Years-From-Now Bad-Ending Evil You.

We’re talking a “Terran Empire Enterprise” type of Evil You. … well, at least he doesn’t have a goatee.

OH GOD AAAAGH GO BACK TO SILENCE PLEASE

Distorted belt effects are not okay! Agh! NononoNO!

Oh, and uh... Hey! Remember literally yesterday? When I said I’m loving the ‘parallel self’ juxtapositions that Zi-O’s been doing?

I should probably have remembered that the Ryuki tribute was next, and that I’ve seen the preview screenshots with Mirror Sougo being super creepy.

I may have changed my mind a bit on that juxtaposition love.

MISTAKES WERE MADE.